Fannie, Freddie and FHA ease condo lending
WASHINGTON - April 9, 2010 - To help resuscitate Florida's condo market, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) eased their lending rules. Freddie was last, with new guidelines effective April 1.
The FHA made changes first in November 2009. At the time, Peter Zalewski, a condo market analyst and broker with Condo Vultures in Bal Harbour, Fla., called it a "pretty significant move. ... This might be an entree for traditional and conventional lenders to return to the marketplace."
Among other things, FHA increased the number of project units it would finance from 30 percent to 50 percent; required that at least 50 percent of units were owner-occupied; and reduced a presale requirement for new construction to 30 percent.
In January, Fannie Mae eased its condo lending rules, proving Zalewski's prediction was correct. The government-sponsored enterprise took a hands-on approach by empowering a Florida team to analyze each condo project and approve lending in those it considered to have a lower risk.
Effective April 1, Freddie Mac followed suit. Rather than create teams, however, Freddie Mac stated a list of new rules it would follow as the FHA did, with a prime focus on the buying of a condo in which the seller has a mortgage backed by Freddie Mac.
Those rules include:
· The mortgage file must contain documentation verifying that the existing first lien conventional mortgage on the unit being purchased is owned by Freddie Mac, in whole or in part, or securitized by Freddie Mac.
· The seller's note date of the existing mortgage for the unit being purchased is on or before Dec. 31, 2009.
· The settlement date for the new mortgage is on or before March 31, 2011.
Freddie Mac issued a Bulletin explaining the changes. To download the Bulletin (PDF format) click here.
© 2010 Florida Realtors®
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